“The auto-oriented, weak urban design of these sites is reminiscent of a different time in the history of Whyte Avenue, when vehicular access was the focus. As the surrounding properties have redeveloped into vibrant, pedestrian-oriented spaces, these sites have become a hole in the urban experience and a barrier to connection between the university area to the west and the iconic historical developments further east on Whyte Avenue.”

On Saturday afternoon, Southpark on Whyte hosted a community engagement session on site.

Stantec has been hired to do consulting work on the project, including planning and architectural drawings.

Letters were first mailed to neighbourhood property owners on Oct. 14, 2015 – notifying them of the proposal. A community open house was held on Oct. 28, 2015 to give an overview of the process and timelines.

“I think it will change the dynamic of the neighbourhood, the dynamic of the street and I guess we all have to decide if that’s what we want to see for the future,” Zinger said.